


Something Missing

by thanks_google



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Hurt Klaus Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves Deserves Better, Klaus Hargreeves Needs A Hug, Multi, Past Klaus Hargreeves/David "Dave" Katz
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-22
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:49:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,269
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26044510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thanks_google/pseuds/thanks_google
Summary: Dave doesn't die in Vietnam. But when they're both discharged due to injury, Klaus is ready to put his future life behind him and live with his boyfriend in the 1970s, until a knock at the door disturbs everything
Relationships: Allison Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Allison Hargreeves/Luther Hargreeves, Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, David "Dave" Katz/Other(s), Diego Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves & Luther Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves & Vanya Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves/David "Dave" Katz, Number Five | The Boy & Klaus Hargreeves
Comments: 24
Kudos: 447
Collections: Finished faves





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [At the Edge of the Universe](https://archiveofourown.org/works/22759195) by [VeteranKlaus](https://archiveofourown.org/users/VeteranKlaus/pseuds/VeteranKlaus). 



“Hargreeves! Katz!” Cooper shouted from some feet away. He had seen a gunner before Dave and Klaus did. 

A bullet hurtled through the air, but Klaus wasn’t initially certain where the bullet landed, but he soon knew. He dropped to his right without feeling any pain. Dave and Cooper were suddenly above him, clearly very distressed. “Klaus?” 

“What happened?” Klaus was confused more than anything. 

“Bullet, Klaus. I think it’s your knee.” Dave was trying to remain calm as much as possible, but it was difficult. 

“Does it hurt yet?” Cooper asked, also masking his worry. 

“No, it feels like… like a hollow burning.” Why didn’t it hurt? Shouldn’t it hurt?

“Okay, Hargreeves. We’re gonna try and stop the bleeding, then get you to a medic’s tent.” 

His comrades did what they could to slow the bleeding. “In a moment, it is going to hurt like you won’t believe. I think we’ll hear you, but be sure to let us know.”

Dave and Cooper hauled Klaus so his arms were over their shoulders. His foot was strangely cold. Not numb, but cold, like putting a bare foot in a leather shoe. Still no pain, his leg felt like if he moved it, it would break, but he could see that wouldn’t happen. 

Finally, a mere few metres away from medical attention, the pain was finally kicking in, entirely unbearable. He started yelling all the swears under the sun, and Cooper passed him something to put in his mouth, to bite into, as they lowered him onto a ‘hospital’ bed. 

Some time later, when painkillers began to work and the excruciating agony subsided, he noticed that Dave was no longer standing next to him. 

“Dave?” A nurse didn’t quite catch what he said, so leaned in slightly. 

“Pardon?” 

“Private David Katz, where is he?” 

“The two men who brought you here had to leave. They said they’d be back as soon as they can.”

“...Okay. What happened?” 

“You were badly shot in the kneecap, but you pulled through. Good news is, you’ll be discharged. Bad news is, there will be a lot of problems with mobility. You’re likely to be on crutches for the rest of your life.”

“Ah, well, that’s shit isn’t it?” 

“I’m very sorry, sir.” 

“How long until I can go?” 

“At least a few more weeks in here, and then you’ll have to wait for the next plane, I’m afraid. There are some inns and motels that let soldiers stay free of charge before they leave, out of kindness. I’m sure you or I could ask one of your comrades to talk to one of the owners so a room is ready.” She began to walk away, but Klaus called her back. 

“Thank you… And if anyone called Dave Katz ends up here, you tell me, okay?” 

“Of course, sir.” The nurse smiled before leaving to assist someone else. 

The first few weeks were incredibly tough, the only break being when members of the squadron would visit him. 

The nurse that treated him had died about a week after in a bombing, so Dave could be anywhere, dead or alive. 

He soon found out. 

Jones was next to visit him. “Hey, Hargreeves, how you coming along?” 

“Not bad, not bad. How’s the squadron?” 

“Big retreat last night. Cooper and Lee were captured. Adams and Baker were blown by a bomb.”

“Shit…”

“Katz… he was hit in the hand by a shrapnel.” 

“Holy shit, is he okay?” 

“He’ll be fine. Can’t hold a gun, though. So, he’ll be going back to America with you, it looks like.”

“Nice. We had been talking about getting a house together. Our discharge pensions put together should be pretty decent.”

“Sounds good. Listen, we’re missing you. When you’re let out of here, come see us before you go.”

“Yeah, how about the bar with the karaoke bar? I’ve got a room above it for a while before I fly back.”

A few days to the latter, Dave was at his bedside. “Hey, I missed you,” Dave explained. 

“I was worried about you.” 

“Look at us, eh. A couple of cripples.”

“Jones said they’re discharging you.” 

“Yeah, well. My shot’s fucked. I’ll end up shooting one of our own.”

“We’re going to have a wonderful life together, Katz.”

Three days later, Klaus was on crutches, joining Dave at the room above the bar. 

Two weeks later, they were moving into their house together, their home. It was a one bedroom bungalow, but it was theirs. It was by the beach, and miles from the next house, perfect for a sinful homosexual relationship. 

They also purchased a car, which Dave could drive. 

Finally, they had a beautiful house, a cupboard tucked away containing all physical reminders of war, and a peaceful life ahead of them. 

Sitting on the living room sofa, the pair watched television, but neither were particularly paying attention. Eventually, Klaus drifted to sleep with his head on Dave’s shoulder. 

“Klaus, wake up. It’s okay, it’s just a dream.” Klaus leant off Dave and rested his head on the back of the sofa as he peeled his eyes open, breathing laboured. “Klaus, Klaus, look at me. It’s okay. Breathe, yeah?” Klaus calmed down and took a few deep breaths. “You okay?” 

“Yeah, yeah. It’s just… you know?”

“Yeah, I get it. You want something to eat?” 

“That would be wonderful.” Klaus smiled and kissed Dave’s cheek before he stood up and made his way to the kitchen. 

Looking around their new life together, Klaus realised he could finally put the Umbrella Academy shit behind him.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is an unexpected knock at the door. No one is particularly happy about it.

“Dave,” Klaus called from the floor next to his bed, but his lover was too deep in sleep to hear. He had fallen from the bed in another hopeless attempt to be normal again. Looking above the bed, Klaus could see Dave, peacefully in a deep sleep, which he didn’t want to disturb. He groaned, running a finger along the scar of where his knee was torn apart. He thought again about waking his loved one, his soulmate, but he was sleeping, sleeping without a nightmare, not commonly occurring anymore. Instead, he reached to his crutches, pulling himself up into a standing position. A slight wave of dizziness took over, which he solved by depositing himself back onto the side of his bed. The pain today seemed almost tolerable, something which didn’t happen often at all. 

Pulling himself back to standing, Klaus brought himself to the kitchen and switched on the coffee machine. The shaking of his hands was more likely his nerves and trauma now than injury, and the continuous ringing in his ears made everything slightly worse. Opening the fridge, his eyes ran to the packet of waves. Leaning on the crutch, he placed two waffles each on plates. As he went to take his plate to the couch, there was a knock at the door. Hesitantly, Klaus put down his waffle and walked over to the door. 

He opened it a crack, blinking when he couldn’t believe what he saw. Tears welled up in his eyes, and he shut the door again. He took a minute to take in what he just saw, who just appeared in front of him. Klaus tried to convince himself that he was seeing things, that he wasn’t seeing who he thought he was. “Hey, sorry, can you open the door?” someone called from behind the door. He recognised that voice. He could remember that voice from anywhere. No, it can't be... 

“Sorry, I’ll be there in a minute.” His voice wavered nervously. “Dave!” It sounded urgent, so after a moment, Dave approached Klaus who was still standing in front of the door. Tears were already forming in Klaus' eyes, shocked at what he just saw. He wanted to be hallucinating, however insane that would make him. No matter how many institutions they could lock him, nothing would be worse than the idea that what he just saw, the voice he just heard, was what he thought it was. 

“What’s going on, baby?” 

“It’s… I-”

“Who’s at the door?” 

“M- my…” Dave leaned forward and opened the door. In front of him stood a tall man with a large build, holding a small woman dressed all in white. There was a man with a bleeding scar along his right cheek. A tall, dark skinned woman with a plaster across her neck, and a kid in a uniform. 

“Klaus?” It was Five’s voice after all, this nightmare was real. He's not imagining things, his family is standing in front of him, they're there. They can't be there, they're not born yet, they should be saving the world, they should be- What's going on with Vanya? Why is she in Luther's arms. As good a look as it is, why is she in a white suit? Why does Allison have something on her neck? Why is Five so exhausted? What is going on? Why is this happening? Suddenly Klaus is very aware of the fact that he is hyperventilating, that he hasn't said anything in too long, that his siblings are all staring at him in disbelief. In shock, he stumbled back, but Dave was there to stop him from toppling to the floor. 

Dave thought he had an idea what was going on. “Klausy, is this your…” Klaus just nodded, unable to make words. “Okay, um, why don’t you come in.” He stepped out of the way and the Hargreeves family made their way to the living room, taking seats where they could. Klaus and Dave remained by the kitchen, slightly away from them, despite all of them looking at him in confusion and mild disgust. “Klaus, you should sit d-”

“I’m not sitting next to them. That’s a different kind of painful… the coffee machine’s on, Five wants one.” 

Klaus looked down at the floor. “Klaus, look at me, look at me.” His eyes slowly drifted up to Dave’s. “It’s going to be okay, we’ll talk and find out what they’re doing here. I’m sure they’re going to have some questions. We’ll just answer them as best we can, yeah?” 

“Y- yeah.”

They both leant in for a passionate kiss, but with their family around, it turned into a peck. “Klaus, do you want to sit down?” Diego stood up from the armchair. Dave nodded in agreement to Klaus, with what Diego had said. Reluctantly, Klaus made his way to the armchair, nodding at Diego in acknowledgement. 

“Klaus, what happened?” Five asked, settling into his mug of coffee.

“Sorry?” 

“What are you doing in 1970?” 

“I could ask you the same question.”

“Vanya blew up the moon, so I time travelled us all, and we ended up about half a mile down the road from here.”

"What?" Dave was beyond confused. 

“You know, sometimes it's better not to ask questions when it comes to this family. It ends up in either an argument, or a long winded answer... How long have I been gone?” 

“About a week or so.”

“Huh, interesting.”

Luther was annoyed. “Klaus, I cannot believe we knock at your door after this long, and all you say is ‘huh, interesting’. Why the fuck are you in a house in the countryside of California, miles away from civilisation, with a random man and a set of crutches.”

“The man has a name,” Klaus said through gritted teeth. 

“Which is?” Diego asked. 

“Dave.” Dave leaned in and shook everyone’s hand. 

Five put the empty cup on the coffee table. “Now the pleasantries are over, Klaus, what the fuck are you doing here?” Klaus looked to Dave for comfort, and he read his face. 

Dave took a deep breath, then began. “The first time I saw Klaus was after he’d spent ten hours being tortured by assassins, after he stole their briefcase. He appeared about two years ago on the floor of a base in the A Shau Valley of Vietnam, where he was forced to fight in a war for a year and a half, where he saved my life more times than I can count. He was shot, sent home. Neither of us had a home to go to, so we made our own life.”

“My own life which I hope you’re aware that you have just interrupted,” Klaus made clear. 

“Why didn’t you come back?” Diego asked, anger in his voice. "To your family."

“My whole life has been between life and death, trying to be enough for dear old dad, trying to be good enough for you, trying to live when all I wanted was to die. Seeing Ben’s face when you didn’t believe I could see him. Being heartbroken time and time again by my own family, the people who are meant to love me no matter how many drugs I take. You all destroyed what family is meant to be. Then you sit here and be shocked to find out that I didn’t want to come home. Dave is my family.” There was silence for a minute. “... and also, the briefcase got blown up in a tunnel collapse in the first month.”

Dave sat on the arm of the armchair and held Klaus’ shaking hand in his shaking hand. 

“Is Vanya okay?” Klaus pointed towards his unconscious sibling, while Dave went to the fridge to see if there were any nibbles. 

“Yeah, she just overworked her powers, needs time to recover.” Five was shocked, slightly out of breath. “Where were you shot?” 

“Kneecap. Basically I’ve fucked it up beyond repair... in this decade anyway.”

“I’m so sorry, Klaus. That’s terrible.” Diego sounded meaningful, the words hurt Klaus’ ears. 

“What happened to Allison?” he pointed apologetically towards his sister. 

Luther went to speak, but Allison stopped him, starting to write in her notebook. ‘Vanya’s powers. It’ll get better soon hopefully.’ 

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Klaus said with genuine concern and empathy, while a frown remained on his face and his eyebrows furrowed. Dave came over with some nuts and other snacks.

“Sorry, it’s not much. It’s usually just the two of us, and neither of us have really gotten our appetite back,” Dave placed a few bowls on the coffee table, which Luther lunged for. “Do you have somewhere to stay?” 

“No, nowhere.” Everyone shook their heads but it was Diego who spoke up. “Unfortunately we have been jumped through time with no money or place to stay.”

“You do realise this is a one bedroom house?” Klaus pointed out. 

Dave was sat trying to figure this out. “Klaus and I will take the bed. Two of you can take the couch and we can get some blow ups.”

Klaus stood up, making his way to the kitchen to get a glass of water, the taste of gas in his mouth. He managed on one stick, which was better than normal. After getting his water, he turned back around to his family in front of him. Luther was stood inches from his face, Angry Face #3 on. 

“You thought you were just going to forget about us, never make any effort to come back or find us?” 

“You didn’t blame Allison when she wanted to pretend the Academy never happened. Or Vanya when she got her own apartment. Not even Diego when he moved into that little boiler room. This is where I belong, Luther.”

“You belong at home, in 2019, with us. Not in this bungalow with some sl-” Luther didn’t have to finish the sentence to know what he was going to say. With his now-free hand, he punched Luther in the face, but really, it hurt Klaus more than it did his brother, who pressed him up against the wall behind. 

Klaus was pressed against the ground by a Vietnamese soldier this time, and all the other senses began to flood in. The smell of blood, the sight of soldiers all around, the sound of bombs and gunfire and screams, the taste of gas. Everything suddenly is too familiar. 

“Just let him go, Luther.” Luther? What? What’s Luther doing here, and why did that sound like Five? 

Dave and Diego pulled Luther off Klaus and he fell to the floor, probably doing something wrong to his knee. 

“Klaus, Klaus, look at me,” Dave turned his boyfriend’s face to look at him. “It’s okay, you’re home, we’re both home, with your family.”

“Ah, fuck. Did I do it again?” 

Dave looked sad, Empathy Face #6 on. “Yeah, Klausy. You did it again.” Luther’s backed off by now, sitting back on the sofa. 

“I- I’m sorry. Ah, fuck.” Pain shot up and down his leg, badly. 

“Fuck, does it hurt?” Dave asked, kissing Klaus on the forehead. Klaus nodded and scrunched his eyes closed, face crumpling. “Diego, is it? Can you get some painkillers, they’re in the top cupboard in an orange box.”

Klaus smiled faintly. “He has to put it up high so I can’t reach it.”

“I thought you were clean?” Five mentioned. 

“I have bad days.” Diego leans down and passes Klaus the correct dosage of pills, which Klaus takes with the glass of water still on the side of the counter. "There's the days I want to have every pill in the cupboard, and days I just want to be high again. Hence Dave having control of the medicine cabinet. I still count it as clean that I have the right dosage. Otherwise I'd have died from the pain a long time ago now." 

“I can’t say I believe you’re clean.” Of course, Luther had to disagree with something, had to degrade Klaus even when it seemed like there was nothing more he could do. 

“Luther?” Dave had fire in his belly, and it showed through his voice. “I’m happy with letting you stay here because if you’re his family, you’re my family. But if you’re going to continue to hurt him, scare him, manipulate him, you will not be welcome in this house. Do you understand me?” 

Luther didn’t know how to answer while keeping up his strong mask, so just nodded and finished off the snacks on the coffee table. Diego placed a hand on Klaus’ shoulder, Worried Face #4 on, “You okay, bro?” 

“Yeah, it was just that, and then… that.” His eyes blinked closed for a couple of seconds, Vietnamese fog still clouding his vision slightly, before he forced himself to open them again. “Dave, which painkillers were they?” 

“The strong ones.” Klaus snorted, smiling slightly. These ones made him sleepy. “Come on, you can go have a nap.” Dave and Diego held their hand out for Klaus and slowly pulled him up, and he leaned back onto his crutches, stumbling slightly over to the bedroom, collapsing on the bed and falling into a sleep. 

When he woke up, Ben was standing at the foot of the bed, and it made him jump. “I’m sorry, sorry.” 

“It’s okay… look, everything I said back there, I didn’t want to leave you. But I didn’t have a choice. It was just a happy accident that I didn’t have to be with them anymore… or so I thought. But I missed you, a lot.”

“I was really worried about you, but I get it. And now you’ve got Dave. He seems wonderful.” 

“He’s so great. I love him with all my heart and all my soul, and if I could, I’d run in there, stand on one knee and ask him to marry me. Unfortunately, I can’t do any of those things.”

“I’m so sorry, Klaus. About what happened. I wish I was there to help you through it. “What was it like, recovering?” 

“I was in the hospital for too many weeks. The pain was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced, and that’s including when… well you can pick any of the times you want, really.”

“You should go talk to them. Luther’s calmed down a little. He feels really bad.”

“Vanya?” 

“Still asleep. Five’s going through coffee like it’s a Nando’s refillable. Diego’s worried sick. Allison’s been crying.”

“Yeah, you’re right, I need to speak to them.”


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Klaus talks to his family, and things become a little clearer.

Klaus heaved himself up onto his feet and stumbled into the living room, leaning in the doorframe. “Umm, I’m guessing you have some questions.”

“Yeah, just a few.” Five smirked with the side of his face. Five was now sitting on the armchair, hands on the arms. Luther was sitting at the dining room table (a small table with two chairs), with Allison. Diego was sitting on the couch next to Dave, and Vanya was laying across the loveseat. “Luther, what did you want to say?” 

“Look, man, I’m sorry about what happened, I was just angry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.” There was almost genuity to his voice, almost like he meant it. Klaus still wasn’t convinced, but still nodded in recognition of his apology. 

Allison had written in her notebook: “Are you doing okay?” 

Klaus looked down at the floor for a moment, before bringing his eyes to meet Allison’s. “Well, there are bad days, like I said. Some days it hurts more than others, physically… and emotionally. I’ve been close to overdosing a few too many times, but other than that, yeah, I guess I’m doing okay. I’ve always got Dave to look after me.” Klaus looked over at his soulmate, giving him a half smile, which he returned. “Actually, I have a question.” 

“What?” Diego laughed. 

“What the hell happened? How come you are all here?” 

“So Vanya’s boyfriend turned out to be a murderer who wanted to bring down the academy. He found a book dad had that said that Vanya had powers and-” Five was cut off by a quite confused Klaus. 

“Wowowo, let’s stop a tick. Vanya has powers?” 

“Yeah, dad was scared of her so kept her on drugs to stop them and had Allison rumour her. She basically converts sound waves to kinetic energy. She found out he was manipulating her and killed her, nearly killed Allison, blew up the Academy, killed mom and Pogo, and then blew up the world.”

“That- is she okay?” 

“She’s fine, but she wore herself out, she should wake up soon. Anyway, to give us another go at saving the world, I jumped us back in time, but went back too far, and as I said, landed about half a mile down the road.”

“Wow, okay.” Dave was just about as shocked as Klaus. “Listen, I’m going to get some air beds. Maybe something to eat. Klaus, do you want to come?

“Oh god, yes.” Klaus hopped forward, already making his way to the door. “We’ll be back soon! Don’t go into our room!” Klaus was out of the house by now, Dave having to grab the keys and money and rush to Klaus, who was already on his way to the car. He was leaning against the metal door, looking slightly pale. 

“Hey, you okay?” Dave asked, a little worried. 

“Yeah, I just… I hoped I’d never have to face them again. And I- I left a little too fast.”

“You still want to come with me?” 

“If I have to spend another minute in there, I might just explode.”

“They’re your family.” 

“You’ve seen the way they treat me, are you surprised?” Klaus pulled himself up and into the car’s passenger seat, while Dave climbed into the driver’s.


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Klaus and Dave go to buy some food and airbeds. Things happen, and Vanya makes an appearance.

The siblings could hear the car pull out of the drive, and the engine slowly got quieter as they drove further away. Luther looked out of the window and watched the pick-up leave, then turned back to the family. “Look, I think we should have a look around.”

“What are you talking about?” Diego was angry. “We cannot come to someone’s house, wait for them to leave, then snoop around their house!”

“But this isn’t just anybody, this is Klaus. It’s not like it’s a stranger.” Luther was insistent, no matter how much Allison looked frustrated with him. 

“He’s as good as a stranger. Did you see him, he’s changed, Luther. You might not understand that because everything in your life is the same as it always has been, but he has another life, one without us, which we have interrupted. He has been kind to us, we cannot barge in and invade his privacy.”

Five stood up. “Diego, it pains me to say this, but I have to agree with Luther. We have to know what sort of person Klaus is now, not even thinking about this Dave person. We have to know what we’re dealing with before I can make a judgement about going back, and whether it’s safe to bring Klaus back with us.”

“What are you talking about, of course he’s coming back with us!” Luther almost laughed. 

“He has his own life now. As much as it hurts me to say, we can’t interrupt his life like this and just expect him to leave his home and his life to come back with us.”

“We’re his family.” Luther was slightly annoyed now, already standing up to investigate the house. 

“Within a minute of being in his house, you scared him into a flashback and hurt him. We might have been raised as his family, but he lived on the streets to get away from us.”

Five was sick of their bickering. “Right, we’ll take a vote. Who thinks we look around?” Luther, Five, and, reluctantly, Allison, raised their hands. A look of betrayal spread across Diego’s face. “Right, we don’t know how long they’ll be gone, so we’ll split up. Luther, take the bedroom, Allison the bathroom, me and Diego the living room. If anyone finds anything, don’t stay quiet.”

Luther wandered into the bedroom, and began adventuring through everywhere he could. He looked under the bed, but there was nothing but some old dusty clothes. The bedside drawers just contained some notebooks and nothing in particular. Finally, he opened the closet doors, and began looking through the clothes. 

He came across their army fatigues, as well as their uniforms. He laid them out on the bed, so his family could see them when they came in, and he continued to look through. At the top of the closet, tucked away, was a box, which Luther pulled out. Opening the lid, Luther saw two guns, dog tags, helmets, allsorts. He tipped the box onto the bed. “Guys! I’ve found something!” The siblings made their way into the bedroom, all looking over to the bed, where everything was laid out. 

“So this is all his army stuff?” Diego seemed overwhelmed by it all. 

“You know, this time, I’ve never fully believed him.” Luther was also overwhelmed, taking in everything in front of him. 

“That’s because you’re an asshole.” Diego was still annoyed at Luther for what he did to Klaus, for how he hurt him, took him back to the place he was clearly trying to forget. 

“It was all in a box at the top of the closet.” 

“I think we should put it back,” Five had some logic. “He obviously doesn’t want us to find it, doesn’t want to remember it, or it would be on display.”

“Don’t you think it’s a little worrying that they have machine guns.” Luther pointed towards the two M-60s.

“They also have faulty and spent grenades. I’d say they’re more sentimental than violent.” Five was getting skittish, worrying that they could be back any time now, because they’d been gone a fair amount of time. 

Diego looked down at a photo frame, containing a squadron of people, and the writing at the bottom right corner confirmed it was the 173rd Airborne Brigade. He leant forward and picked it up, seeing Dave and Klaus in the picture. 

It was then that the front door opened, and two men ventured in. “Guys? Where are you?” they heard Klaus say, confused. 

“Maybe they went out?” Dave said.

“They wouldn’t leave Vanya on her own in case they woke up…” It took Klaus a minute to piece things together, but as soon as he did, he ran as quick as it was possible for him to go into their bedroom, to see a mass of green and black covering their bed. His siblings were all now looking at him. 

“So, who put their money on my siblings betraying my privacy?” Klaus would put his hand up if he had the free hand or the energy, instead just raising his fingers slightly from the crutch.

“Klaus, wait-” Diego was interrupted by being shown Klaus’ back as he left the room, sitting on the armchair in the living room. He could hear Dave with them, starting to put everything away. 

The Hargreeves were trying to reason with Dave, telling him the excuses they had used to do it in the first place. Klaus was just annoyed, not so much that they went through his stuff, but that, after all this time, all his honesty after they blackened his new life, after he told them everything, that they still didn’t trust him, have any sort of faith in him. 

He was annoyed that he couldn’t leave his own house for an hour without being entirely violated. That box was up there for a reason, tucked away so they didn’t have to see it every day. And his own family brought it out and made him see it again, made Dave see it again. 

Speaking of Dave, he was now standing in front of him, as Klaus realised he had been looking into Vanya’s unconscious figure for some minutes. “Hey, you okay?”

“Yeah, gave them all a good talking to.”

“That’s my baby.” He leaned in and the pair kissed for a few seconds, before footsteps came closer, as Luther, Diego, Allison and Five strolled in, taking a seat in front of their brother. Dave took his seat on the arm of the armchair, folding his arms. 

“Look, Klaus. We’re really sorry for doing this, and we know-” Diego was cut off by the phone ringing. Dave excused himself and picked up the telephone. 

“Hello?”  
“Yes, this is his… roommate, David Katz.”  
“Yes, okay. Okay, thank you. I’ll put that in the calendar.” Dave put the phone down and turned to Klaus with a smile on his face. 

“What?” Klaus smiled slightly, oblivious. 

“That was the hospital.”

“Do they want me to go in?”

“They can get you a knee replacement.”

Klaus smiled in disbelief. “I thought they couldn’t do it?” 

“Well, they just called and said they can!” All the siblings smiled, even Luther, and Klaus relaxed the muscles he didn’t know he was tensing. 

Just at that moment, a noise came from Vanya’s direction, from her sofa, and she began to stir.


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Klaus has conversations in the hospital

“Vanya?” Allison mouthed, instantly moving so she was sitting in front of her sister. Klaus maneuvered so he was also sitting in front of her. Everyone else held back so as not to overwhelm her. Her eyes peeled open and she looked between her brother and her sister. 

“Hey, Van, it’s okay. It’s okay,” Klaus smiled. “You doing okay?” 

“Eh, I’ll be- Klaus?” Vanya’s eyes shot to Klaus, who she just noted was there. She smiled and pulled him into a hug, starting to cry. “Oh my God, Klaus, I thought you were dead, I was so worried about you. They broke into the house and then you were gone and-”

“Van, it’s okay. I’m fine, I’m okay. We’ve got a lot to catch up on.” He scoffed and smiled. While she didn’t know what to say, what he meant, she was happy. 

“Klaus, that’s terrible, I’m so sorry,” Vanya said through tears. “If I’d known-”

“Van, it’s okay. You couldn’t have known, no one could have. You all thought I was just… off on a drug party or something.”

“Klaus-”

“No, it’s okay, because I brought that on myself, you had every right to think that. But it’s okay, we’re all together.”

After this conversation, another two days passed, and there were only a few minor arguments. Vanya was still getting her energy back, while Five was preparing to figure out her powers and what they really mean. 

Dave and Klaus were sitting in a hospital room, where they were getting Klaus ready for his operation. He was getting worried, mostly about the fact that he’s been clean (mostly clean) for so long, and doesn’t want to go through the cravings and relapsing and withdrawals and detoxing again. Dave reassured him it will be okay. 

The operation went well, and Dave was right by his side when he woke up. He was holding his hand. “Hey baby,” Dave whispered, smiling. 

“Hey baby,” Klaus mirrored. “Everything okay or did they have to take the leg off this time?” 

“Everything went perfectly.”

“Ah, well that’s good isn’t it.” He shut his eyes momentarily and yawned. “God, I’m exhausted.”

“Yeah, well, they pumped you with enough drugs to make a horse fall asleep. Apparently you have quite a tolerance to narcotics.”

“We have a mutual relationship, yes. Mixing time travel with withdrawals and a war was… interesting. To say the least.”

A doctor came in soon after. “I’m glad to tell you that the surgery went incredibly well. We’re going to keep you in for three or four days for observation, and then you can go home. You’ll be in some pain but it will be significantly less than what you’ve experienced recently, so don’t worry too much about that. To catch you up on what will generally be happening after you are discharged, we will give you strong painkillers to help with the recovery. We want you to try movements as much as possible, slightly more every day. Use crutches to walk at first, then just sone, then hopefully soon, you’ll be able to walk unassisted again.”

Klaus smiled, and so did Dave. This meant that perhaps one day things could go back to normal, he could be independent again. 

Diego peeped around the corner a few hours later, and Dave left so they could have some ‘bro time’. “Hey, bro.” Klaus reached his arms out and Diego reluctantly embraced his brother. “Before you ask, yes I am high, but it isn’t my fault this time.” 

Diego chuckled, “Yeah, I know. How did it go, are you going to be okay?” 

“I’m going to be just fine. Is Vanya doing okay? And Allison?” 

“Vanya’s fine, feeling much better. Allison is great, too. How are you doing? You feeling good?” 

“I’m feeling wonderful. You like the seventies?” 

“I don’t think it’s really my time period, but it’s nice, very vintage.”

“Right now, it’s modern and vintage is the forties.”

“It’s just nice seeing you in… semi-normal clothes.”

“Well, the hospital gown isn’t my favourite look at the moment, but I reckon I could style it out.”

“How much longer are you going to be in here?” 

“A few days or so, I think. How’s it going in the house?” 

“Surprisingly okay.”

“Luther hasn’t torn it to bits yet?” 

Diego laughed. “Not quite.”

“I’ll be home soon anyway. Is there enough food?”

“Stop asking questions, we’ve got it under control. Don’t worry about anything. Five’s already thinking about how to get us home.”

“What would you say if I wasn’t sure about going home with you?” 

“I would say that I respect your decision, but we would all want you to come home where you belong. I don’t think Luther would have this same opinion.”

“What would Luther want with me? I was just his little puppy.”

“Yeah, but he loves you… In his own little way.”

“What about Five? I’m sure he’s complaining about the timeline and everything.” 

“A little, but you’ve probably already messed up the timeline, what’s wrong with a little more, eh?” 

“Thanks, Dee.”

“Promise me you’ll at least think about it.”

“You think Dave would be able to come back with us?” 

“Maybe, I’ll talk to Five… Anyway, I’ll leave you to it. Get better soon, Klaus. It’s quiet without you.”

“Thank you.” They exchanged a smile, and Diego left the room, leaving Klaus alone, with Ben. “I’m guessing you have some questions?” 

“Just one.”

“What now?”

“Do you love him? Dave?” Ben smiled slightly, knowing Klaus has been waiting so long for someone to talk to about their relationship, someone to tell, someone to brag to, someone to cry to. 

“I love him more than words can explain. He’s just… perfect. In every way. And I know I’m like your daughter and you want someone to look after me, and I assure you he does just that. He loves and looks after me and protects me, when no one else could.”

“Well, that’s me done for, then.”

“I’m not just going to ditch you now I have someone else to turn to.”

“It’s funny you say that because that’s exactly what you did.” Ben laughed and Klaus snorted. 

“I’m sorry, Ben. I wish you were here this whole time. But, to be honest, I was trying to pretend the Umbrella Academy never happened. Everything is just a constant reminder. And then everyone shows up and- sorry, I know you love them, but they’re pains in the ass and I just want everything to be like how it was before they knocked at my door… with you of course.”

“They’ll go eventually.”

“What if they don’t? What if they want me to come back with them?”

“They can’t make you do anything, Klaus. No one can.”

“Yeah, but what if they suddenly take a liking to Dave, or realise you’re here and want to spend more time with you. Then it’s just selfish for me to stay here.”

“Klaus, listen to me. No one is going to make you do anything. I won’t let them, okay?” 

“Okay.”

“Good, now tell me all about him.”


	6. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Final Chapter! Sorry it's been a while, I lost interest in writing the story, but look out for more Klaus related fics on my page!

Klaus was discharged from hospital some time after, walking with one crutch, an advancement on the previous two. The pain was bearable, for the first time in a long while. He was under some pretty heavy medication, but this time, it was prescribed. 

Dave came to pick him up. 

“Let’s get you out of here!” Dave opened the car door and ushered his boyfriend into the passenger seat. 

“I don’t think I could have lasted another minute.”

“Umm…” Dave began when they started driving. “I heard your siblings whispering when they thought I couldn’t hear them.”

“Huh. What were they saying?” 

“Five’s found a way home.” Klaus’ hand which was resting on his boyfriend’s leg startled, gripping tighter. “Klaus, it was always going to happen eventually. We always needed to talk about it. “

“I belong here, Dave. with you.”

“I know you’re not happy about this, but in the future, you said that we could be together. Forever. Happy. We could get married, we could have children, and all those dog breeds you said you wanted. Our life could be so much better than this, Klaus. It’ll be just like it has been, but in the future.”

“I… I don’t know, Davey.”

“Klaus, we could get married. Like we always said we would. Except we won’t be old and wrinkly while we wait for it to happen naturally. We can go, Klaus. We can get married. We could get our own little house so you don’t get sick of your siblings. Please, Klaus. Please.”

They sat in silence for a moment, and Dave didn’t press it any further, leaving it to him to decide. 

“Okay.” It was quiet, and Klaus’ head was leaning against the window. It was almost too quiet for Dave to hear. 

Dave didn’t reply for another moment, but he did. “Thank you.” And after another moment, “We’re home.” Klaus’ shaking hand reached for the handle to the passenger side door, fumbling with it until it opened. He placed the bottom of his remaining crutch on the pavement next to him, lowering himself onto the ground after it. 

He was tired, so his movements were slow and he almost stumbled multiple times on the way over to the door. Opening it, he was met with a series of friendly faces, all of which were supportive. “Hey, guys.”

“Hey, Klaus. Dave… did you talk to him?” Five’s voice. He was _trying_ to be sensitive, whether it worked or not was another thing. 

“Yeah, I did.” Dave smiled from the corners of his lips. “We’re going to come back with you, if that’s alright!”

Everyone was happy, and everyone helped collect some bags of Dave and Klaus’ most prized things. 

“Are you ready to go?” Five asked as they all held hands. Everything suddenly occurred to Klaus, everything that meant he would be with the family that ruined his life. The fact that he narrowly escaped death, and that he should be spending his remaining days with the person he loves, in the house he loves, not with his family. 

He looked up at Dave, standing to the left of him, who nodded his head and smiled reassuringly. “Yeah, yeah, I’m ready.” He’ll miss his home, but he’s always known that a home is the people you’re with, not the place you stay. 

In a moment, they disappeared in a shine of blue, and they soon reappeared in the hallway of the Umbrella Academy, and Klaus looked around at what he hadn’t seen in such a long time. 

“I’ve teleported us to just before Vanya blew up the house, so it’s still intact,” Five explained. Vanya looked worried suddenly. “Don’t worry. We’ve changed the timeline; you don’t have to worry about that, no more apocalypse.”

Klaus leaned against the pillar in the corner of the hall, looking down at the broken chandelier on the table in front of him. How had that happened? That wasn’t there before he left. How much had he missed? He couldn’t remember anything after the funeral, because everything turned into an apocalyptic blur after that. 

“Ben…” he whispered, eyes darting around the room to meet nothing but his siblings’ now worried faces. “Ben?” Slightly louder. “Where’s Ben? He was there. He was with me.” 

The siblings must have thought he was having another episode, or that he hit his head on the journey back, because a look of concerned confusion spread across their faces, and he realised he’d have to clarify. “Oh, another thing you didn’t believe. Ben’s been with me. But that doesn’t matter now; he’s gone. He’s not here. Ben’s-” He was cut short by his own gasping voice as Ben appeared from behind Luther, hoodie and all. He took a deep breath, letting out a sigh of relief. “It’s okay, it’s okay. He’s here.”

Dave’s hand connected with his, and so did the other, so now they were facing each other. Slowly, Dave crouched until he was on one knee, still holding Klaus’ hands in his. 

“You’ve taught me everything I know about myself, everything I didn’t know before. You’ve taught me that it doesn’t matter who I love, you taught me who I am. You saved my life more times than I can count. I love you more than life itself and I’d do anything in the past, present and future for you. Klaus Hargreeves, my favourite time traveller, will you marry me?” Klaus smiled, nodding dramatically. He so wanted to lean in and kiss his fiance, but his current restrictions disallowed it, so he waited for Dave to stand back up before he leaned into a passionate kiss. _Their_ siblings cheered and applauded with smiles on their faces.

This is it. This is the story they deserve.


End file.
